One Year Later: Zoe Returns
by redcolours
Summary: Zax: Set one year after Zoe moves to America, Max has managed to move on as well as he can. With new girlfriend, Jen, he's happy. They are the same age, have loads in common, and Max has begun to heal his wounds. Will things change with the arrival of an old lover?
The sunlight was it's own alarm. Max could feel his eyelids giving in as the sheets rustled around him. There was a yawn coming from the right side of the bed; it was Jen.

"Well, at least we didn't oversleep this time," She said, whilst giving her eyes a rub.

This made Max wonder back to two months ago whereby he and Jen had stayed up dangerously late, slept through their alarm, and were almost two hours late for work. Max chuckled at the memory, making Jen smile. The sun caught Jen's bright, blue eyes just right and Max exclaimed that she was Sleepy Beauty. Jen thanked him for the compliment by pushing one of the pillows into his face. Max crawled underneath the sheets to make his way on top of Jen and started kissing her. After a minute or two, Jen pulled away.

"Now we actually are going to be late," Smiling, Max kissed her once again and Jen relaxed a bit more. A few more minutes wouldn't hurt anyone, Max thought.

"MAX!" Max gave a huge sigh as his step-sister Robyn burst through his bedroom door. She was so used to seeing Max and Jen together that the scene didn't very much surprise her.

"What are you doing? Get up!"

"I did try telling him," Jen responded with a laugh. Robyn gave her brother a dirty look.

"If you get fired, how are we supposed to pay rent? With empty beer cans?" Robyn gestured to all the alcoholic rubbish that was littered around the room.

Max was silent in thought, thinking of a sarcastic way out. "Well-"

Robyn gave a huff before storming out, having heard all of Max's useless excuses before. "Just hurry up!" Max and Jen chuckled loudly.

Max felt good. He and Jen had been dating for five months now. Jen was stunning, and Max felt she got more beautiful every day. She had very pale skin, brown, curly hair and blue eyes that sparkled, and Max loved her. She was also a little bit younger than him, and worked in the E.D. After his last relationship, Max swore to keep his work and relationships completely separate, but when Jen came along things changed.

He and Jen had so much in common. They both played guitar and, only last night, they had strummed along together. Jez, their other housemate, used two biros and a wooden table to be on drums. Robyn, however, didn't much appreciate the noise.

Max had always been a porter at the E.D and, although it was tough and boring, it wasn't so bad at times. Jen had arrived looking for a job in admin and now worked behind the reception with Noel. Max liked that Jen was like him, in the fact that she knew close to nothing about medicine. They had bonded over Max teaching Jen the ropes and procedures of the hospital, and giggled over the long words that they didn't understand or the giant machinery that they didn't know how to turn on. Jen was always struggling when she first came to the E.D, but now that she had settled in, everyone seemed to get on well with her. Noel even confided in Max that she was one of the best reception staff they had. He put this down to Jen's age and how she could type a lot quicker than some of their older colleagues.

It had been a year since Zoe had left but Max never liked talking about that. Jen knew that Zoe used to be a consultant at the hospital, but that was it. She definitely had no idea that Max was still married to a 40-something doctor living halfway across the world in America.

For Max, it was difficult at first, but wounds heal and he had Jen now. He was happy. He still thought of Zoe now and then, but she had left him and after a while he realised that there was nothing he could do to change that. Max believed that he would never get over Zoe, but, with Jen, he could see the possibility of a future with someone else.

Stumbling into the E.D, minutes before the start of their shift, Max quickly gave Jen a kiss before going their separate ways for the day. Heading past resus, Rita emerged from the doors and stopped Max.

"Max, just the man. This small defibrillator belongs in Connie's office. The one in resus malfunctioned so she let us use hers. You couldn't drop it back for me, could you?"

Max grabbed the A4-sized machine by the handle with a smile. "For you, of course. I am Max, the postman," Max gave a little bow whilst opening the door behind him and going out. Reaching the main cubicles, Max noticed that a small staff meeting was taking place. Max stopped dead in his tracks.

"So, I'd like you all to welcome her back with open arms," Connie was just finishing and, in Max's entrance, turned to look at him. Everyone else in the room seemed to follow suit.

Zoe stood by Connie, looking eager and nervous all at once. Zoe, Max's Zoe, was back in Holby.

There was a loud crash as Max's grip of the defib evaporated and all of the contents splattered into small pieces on the cold, hard floor.


End file.
